Barcelona star Lionel Messi has joined an elite group of players by picking up the Onze d’Or award, which is chosen by readers of French magazine, Onze Mondial for the player of the year in Europe, according to AS.

Messi joins previous winners of this awards including the greatest football legends like Michel Platini, Diego Maradona, Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldo.

Messi was also nominated for the award last year, but was only runner-up to Portugal sensation Cristiano Ronaldo. The Argentine has already picked up a host of trophies including the Trofeo Alfredo Di Stefano, the Premio Don Balon and the UEFA Club Footballer of the Year.

He is also widely tipped to win the forthcoming FIFA World Player of the Year award after being the runner-up for the last two seasons.